Radiator cap



Nov. 30 1926. 1,609,252

R. H. HUMMERT RADIATOR GAP Filed Nov. 28, 1924 FIG. 5

INVENTOR,

1M MA1 v ATTORNEY Patented Nov. 3 0, 71926. I

ROBERT E. HUMMEBT, or DAYTON, onto, AssrGNoR roman s. n. 'rnoivr'son MAN'U- Y FACTURING'G01VLPANY,0F DAYTON, 0310, 'A oonronATIoNoF 01-110.

RADIATOR CAP.

Applicationfil'ed N0vem'ber'28, 1924. Serial No. 752,594.

particularly to a'radiator cap of: the arnr type.

It is the principle object of my inventionto provide a radiator cap of the armtype that may be turned a sufii'cient distance beyond its leak-proof position'on the radiator neck, to properly aline 1ts arms with the front of'the radiator." Manyxradiator caps of the present form come to a dead-thread when their leak-proof position on the rad1ator neck has been reached, so that they cannot be turned further to properly aline their arms with the front of the radiator. If, for this purpose, they are turned in a reverse direction, their leak-proof connection with their-respective radiator necks will be destroyed. V 1

My radiator cap, on the other hand, is provided with gasket and spring means which permits it to be freely turned to bring its arms into proper alinement with the front of the radiator while still maintaining its leak-proof connection with the radiator neck. It is not only important that the radiator cap be screwed down tightly upon the radiator neck to prevent the escape of liquid between the threads, but it is extremely desirable from an aesthetic standpoint that its arms, whether they be; of the ball, wing or kindred type, shall be parallel with the front of the radiator.

In the accompanying drawings Figure 1 is a top plan viewof my radiator cap in its alined position, the dotted lines indicating a position of the cap in which the gasket is tight on the radiator neck, and from which it has been turned forwardly to its full line or alined position. Figure 2 is a front/elevational view, partly in section, of my improved radiator cap, containing in combination. with a cork-copper gasket, a helical. spring. Figure 3 is a top plan view of this spring. Figure 4 is a top plan view of the cork-copper gasket. :Figure 5 is a front elevational View, partly in section, of my radiator cap employing a curled-spring washer in place of the helical spring. And Figure 6 is a top plan view of the curled-' spring washer or compression member.

Referring to the accompanying drawings for a detailed description of the Various forms of embodiment of my invention, the numeral 1 designates an externally-threaded filler neck of an automobile radiator 2. The numeral3 designates a radiator cap formed with two oppositely-disposed radial-arms 4, 4 of'a design which not only improves the appearance of'the cap, but which facilitate the. screwing of its tubular, internally threaded skirt 5upon the radiator neck 1.,

Formed within the cap 3 justabove its skirt portion 5,;isan annular ledge or shoulder 7 against which is seated a helical 'annular or garter spring 8 constructed of phosphor-bronze or other material that will not be affected by the liquid in the radiator. (See Figures 2' and 3.) Mounted in the skirt portion 5 of the cap 1 against the spring 8 is an annular gasket 9 which is preferably of the cork-copper type and which is adapted to be brought into tight engagement with the top of the radiator neck 1 to form a leak-proof connection be tween said neck and the cap when the latter is screwed down upon it.

After the cap 1 has been turned to compress the gasket 9 sufficiently to form a leakproof connection between the cap and the radiator neck, the arms 4, 4 may stand in the dotted line positions shown inFi'gure 1, or out of parallelism with the front of the radiator. This being an awkward and unattractive position for them, they may be further turned in the same direction to an alined position with respect to the radiator front, against the compression of the garter spring 8. The radially-yielding property of this spring is suflicient to permit the arms 4, 4 to be brought to an alined position from any point where a leak-proof connection between the radiator neck and cap has been effected, without destroying this connection.

Thus, by the employment of the spring v8, it is always possible to bring the arms 4, 4 into parallelism with the front of the radiator after a leak-proof connection has been established between the cap and the radiator neck, or, to employ a common eX- pression, after the cap has been screwed home. 7

Instead of the garter spring 8, a curlspring washer such asthe washer 10'Sl1OWI1' in Figures 5 and 6, may be employed to rev ceive the compressive force of the gasket 9 when the cap 8 is screwed down upon the radiator neck 1. The tension of this washer is governed by the number and'depth of its" undulations- 0r bends, so that the ability to turn a radiator cap of large diameter beyond its non-leaking point on a radiator neck may be made as great as that of a small cap by increasingthe number and depth of the undulations or bends in the washer 1.0. I do not wish to belimited to the garter spring or the curled-spring Washer as the yielding means to be employed with the gas ket to permit a radiator cap to be turned beyond its non-leaking position on a radiator neck for the purpose of bringing the arms of the cap into parallelism with the front of'the radiator, since any other suit- .able means may be employed for this purpose if desired. The means I employ for the above purpose are simple and eflieient, and are particularly adapted for use in a one-piece cap.

Furthermore, -I do not Wish to be limited to an arm cap as the one in which my improved self-aliningmeans may. be employed,

since they may be, with equal benefit, used in temperature-indicatlng and kindred caps Without arms.

Having described my invention, I claim:

The combination with a fluid container having a filling neck, a cap adapted to be screwed upon the latter and formed With an internal annular ledge, of a gasket within said cap for engagement with the top of ROBERT H; Hum near. 

